From earliest childhood, I told my children I loved them often, but I would explain to them why, and ask them to repeat it back to me often. I would tell them I loved them because they were lovable, and because they were my children. I wanted them to feel loved in and of themselves, and to know that my loyalty was absolute. As they got older, I told them that second part was in case they became less lovable as teenagers. Fortunately, I don’t think that is going to happen.
They have no need to rebel, because they have more than enough space to grow without it. That is my feeling, at any rate. And I have often pointed out to them that indiscriminate sex, drugs and alcohol are often used to make kids feel mature, but they are actually a sign of immaturity. Both of them are and want to be responsible, which makes me feel good. Their mother has a great deal to do with that as well.
Most of the world we live in is the result of parental decisions. Good parenting makes for a good society, and bad parenting makes for generalized unhappiness, violence, and failure.